Claret and Blue Rising - The Villa Academy Newsletter

A huge thank you to anyone tuning in to read the second edition of Claret and Blue Rising - I really enjoy adding a bit more substance to the coverage I provide via academyavfc on X, Instagram, Threads and now Bluesky.

There’s only once place to kick off this month’s edition…

Villa Leave It Late In Leipzig

A trip to Leipzig was the final calling point for our UEFA Youth League League Phase campaign. Matchday Five defeat to Juventus meant our task in Germany had been simplified - a draw would no longer be good enough to progress. Our final League Phase fixture was a must-win. What ensued was a heist that the Villa Villan himself could only dream of plotting.

Josep Gombau opted for a change in defence which brought Triston Rowe into the middle to partner Leon Routh at centre half and Kyrie Pierre was inserted at right back. Brad Burrowes, fresh from his England U17 debut, lead the line and duly repaid the faith shown from Gombau by taking advantage of some calamitous Leipzig build up to unerringly fire us ahead after 9 minutes. It was not plain sailing for Villa and, indeed, the hosts struck back almost immediately, albeit in bizarre fashion. Despite the ball going out off an RB Leipzig head, play restarted with Leipzig possession and hesitant defending allowed Lionel Voufack to slip in to level the scores.

Villa were slow out of the blocks in the second half and were punished for their failure to capitalise on a lion’s share of first half possession when Toni Langsteiner was on hand to convert from close range after a cross wasn’t cleared effectively. This time, however, it was Villa who were quick to restore parity when the energetic, and yet again impressive, Travis Patterson weaved his way to the byline and cut back for Jamal Jimoh-Aloba to accurately direct the ball into the bottom right corner. More on Jamal to come.

Leipzig went on to restore their lead with 20 to play, Langsteiner again alert in the danger zone to bundle in after Sam Lewis’ magnificent save. The seconds ticked away and, admittedly, hope began to fade; but, in the third of five additional minutes, a glimmer. A deep and looping ball into the box from Aidan Borland was met sweetly by Jamal Jimoh-Aloba with a perfectly aimed header into the top corner to beat the stretching Luca Janosch. Belief. Two more minutes to find a winner. Time for another?

Villa rallied and pushed men forward, almost being caught out themselves but were thankful to George Hemmings who bravely retrieved the ball from a Leipzig three-on-one, giving us one final opportunity. One last attack. Two more passes, Young into Borland and on for Mason Cotcher and we’re in the Leipzig box. Cotcher is bundled over by Miguel Boog. Unbelievable. Penalty to Villa.

Ben Broggio. I’m of no doubt you’ll have bigger and higher-pressure moments to come. 378 in attendance, you will play and have already played in front of bigger audiences. This, though, is massive. One kick of the ball to win it.

Bedlam. Broggio nervelessly sends Janosch the wrong way and there’s bedlam. As Villa’s squad and backroom staff flock forward to mob Broggio, the final whistle sounds and qualification is secured. RB Leipzig U19 3-4 Aston Villa U19. A handful of Villa fans (and I mean a handful!), myself included, celebrate in the corner.

It feels wrong to do so at such a point in the story, but selfishly I’m going to talk about myself for just a second. What an affirming moment for all of the effort put into running the account. It felt like destiny, some kind of reward for the moments sat on coaches to away matches typing away. In Germany, watching this team do that. But this isn’t about me.

Jamal Jimoh-Aloba, outstanding. Simply outstanding. Travis Patterson, energetic, brave, outstanding. George Hemmings, enigmatic, tireless, outstanding. Kadan Young, elusive, exciting, outstanding. Ben Broggio, nerveless, elegant, outstanding. To a man, outstanding. This is a side to be proud of. There will be so many brilliant careers in this group.

Progress means a one-legged away tie in the Last-32 against one of the winners from the Domestic Champions Path play-offs. Friday’s draw has blessed us with a trip to the beautiful Pancho Arena just outside Budapest, where we’ll face Puskas Akademia. The Hungarians knocked out Gent on penalties in the Champions Path Final Play-Off Round after earlier seeing Aberdeen off 8-1 on aggregate. This will be another interesting tie and a valuable development opportunity against somewhat of an unknown quantity. Ties are due to take place on either 11/12th February but can be arranged for a different date if both sides and UEFA’s administration agree.

Vertu Trophy Rollercoaster Ride

Villa’s final Academy assignment of the calendar year was a trip to Blackpool in the Last 32 of the Vertu Trophy. Already the last Academy side standing, Villa were looking to move into the Round of 16 for the first time since becoming one of the invited Academy sides in the competition.

Oliwier Zych returned to start in goal and Kyrie Pierre started in attack against a Blackpool side boasting the experience of prolific EFL scorer Jordan Rhodes. Villa started well and matched the Tangerines for the entirety of the contest; the hosts taking the lead in the opening seconds of the second half when a sloppy piece of midfield play was punished by Elliot Embleton’s bottom corner finish.

Villa continued to push and earned their equaliser when Luka Lynch’s persistence won the ball upfield and allowed him to a pick out player of the match Jamal Jimoh-Aloba who duly hammered home into the corner. We were actually unlucky not to win this in normal time with four quickfire chances coming and going by in a matter of seconds - Mason Cotcher coming closest to settling the tie when his effort rebounded back off the woodwork. A last-second header was parried away and the full time whistle meant a penalty shootout, and it was certainly a penalty shootout that we got.

Kane Taylor and Todd Alcock kicked the shootout off perfectly, converting their efforts while Albie Morgan sent his effort wide for the hosts. Aidan Borland’s effort was saved before a remarkable sequence of 32 consecutive successful penalties, including brilliant efforts from both keepers. George Hemmings converted his second of the night before Blackpool’s Jordan Gabriel struck the post to seal a spectacular and somewhat hard to believe 18-17 shootout win.

A common theme of late with our Academy sides is the abundance of character on display in their performances. Yet again facing defeat, Villa grew and earned their deserved reward for a mature and probing display. Jamal Jimoh-Aloba was exceptional and it is clear to see why he is so prominent in the thoughts of the senior management team. Kerr Smith’s penalties were brave and excellently executed - but it is unfair to single out one taker. All 11 players scored during the shootout, displaying a level of maturity unbecoming of an Academy side.

The reward for our penalty shootout marathon is a Last 16 tie against Bradford - Villa have been drawn at home in this one but it remains unclear whether we will actually host the fixture. Nevertheless, we will face the Bantams on week commencing January 13th looking to extend our Vertu Trophy campaign to new heights.

FA Youth Cup Dominance

Accrington Stanley were the visitors to Bodymoor Heath in the Third Round of this season’s edition of the FA Youth Cup. Having seen off Blyth Spartans in Round Two, the Category Three Academy were somewhat of an unknown quantity and promised a slightly different and, perhaps, more physical test to that of a league fixture but one Villa would have felt confident to overcome.

Villa will field a strong side in this competition, blending some of top performing players from our table-topping U18 Premier League side with a number of more senior Premier League 2 and UEFA Youth League regulars. Woody Burgess captained a side which included TJ Carroll on his return from injury and featured Rodrigo Fortes at left back while Mason Cotcher wore the number 9 shirt.

The game fell into the expected pattern, with Villa enjoying a large chunk of the ball and Accy looking to pose threat on the counter. Villa’s smooth start was rewarded with the opener when Jamal Jimoh-Aloba shrugged off a challenge and delivered tantalisingly across the six-yard box for Ben Broggio to tap home before Rio Alston made Acrrington’s challenge even tougher by lashing out at Aidan Borland and being dismissed.

Mason Cotcher fortuitously added the second when he collected Borland’s through ball to be met with a tackle which bounced in off his shins and Rodrigo Fortes took advantage of some poor communication to pounce on a bouncing ball to make it three at the break.

The theme continued in the second half with another three goals, two coming from the boot of George Hemmings. The midfielder’s technical ability came to the fore with his second, bobbing his way in and out of a packed Stanley area to finish with his left foot. The returning Luka Lynch added the cherry on the top of the icing with an injury time sixth after Trai’varn Mulley unselfishly slotted it across for a tap in.

This side will rightfully have big ambitions in this tournament and this was a nice introduction into this season’s competition; however it was a test that needed passing - West Ham and Liverpool have both already fallen to lower categorised Academy sides. The next test of our cup credentials will be a trip to the North-East to face Newcastle United. There’s fond memories of this fixture, with our last meeting in this competition being the Carney Chukwuemeka inspired 6-1 Quarter-Final win on the way to 2020/21’s title.

Talking of cup credentials…

Birmingham Senior Cup Defence Underway

Sutton Coldfield’s Domino’s Arena was the destination for the beginning of our Birmingham Senior Cup defence with Romulus FC providing the opposition on a frosty Friday evening where Villa ran out eventual winners after a comeback brimming full of character.

Up against a vocal and physical Romulus side, it was the hosts who struck first with a long-range potshot cannoning off the post into the path of Maradoche Miproe who finished beyond Sam Lewis. Our response came from the in-form Brad Burrowes who cut in from the right to curl magnificently into the top left-hand corner. One each at the break.

Sil Swinkels and Kerr Smith marshalled the defence effectively in this one and it was the Scot who almost put us into the lead when he dribbled his way into the Romulus area and found the near-post side netting with his strike. In truth, on a night of tough conditions it was a bit of magic required to open up the hosts’ defence. Jamal Jimoh-Aloba heeded that call.

Jamal first flicked down the line and then raced beyond his man to deliver a testing cross which Talon Shepherd couldn’t help but force into his own net. Villa didn’t look back from that moment, and Charlie Lutz added the third when he bullied his way into the area and found the corner. He could have made it a brace in injury time when Villa raced away on the break, but his effort rebounded back off the post; however, it mattered little as the final whistle sounded on a 3-1 success.

It’ll be another visit to the Domino’s Arena in Round Three with a repeat of last year’s Third Round draw to take on Sutton Coldfield Town. Fixture details are still to be confirmed so keep an eye out on the social channels for confirmation.

U18s Top Of The Christmas Tree

Funnily enough, there have been no league fixtures for the U18s since the last edition of Claret and Blue Rising so it’s as you were in U18 Premier League. Villa sit 5 points clear of Southampton at the top of the table and won’t play again in the competition until Saturday 18th January when West Brom are the opponents.

Villa have, however, been in Premier League Cup action, and it was a toughly battled 1-1 draw against Group E’s eventual winners Fulham which rounded off the Group Stage.

Elijah Briscoe cancelled out an early Fulham opener to earn a point which ultimately wasn’t enough to secure progress into the Last-8 as the best runner-up. Villa’s tally of 5 points from 3 games with +1 goal difference was bettered by Sunderland who qualified for the Quarter Finals from Group C.

Improvement Needed in PL2

In stark contrast to results in the cup competitions, Villa have struggled for results throughout their League campaign so far with Josep Gombau confessing to some difficulty in managing the three-game weeks presented by our European exploits.

Our final PL2 fixture of the year ended with a heavy and deserved 4-0 defeat to Wolves which was sandwiched either side of the wins in Leipzig and Blackpool. Villa struggled to match the heights they reached in Germany and were punished for a lethargic display in which Luka Lynch was confusingly sent off for a high boot.

There will be plenty of opportunity to rectify our slow start in Premier League 2; a trip to the Potteries to face Stoke will be our first domestic fixture of 2025 and is swiftly followed with another away trip to face Man United. The picture often becomes clearer for the players as we enter January - with the likes of Kerr Smith and Sil Swinkels looking likely to head out on loan we will see a new set of players form a more consistent group towards the end of the season, and this often brings about an upturn in results. There’s no doubt of the talent in this group and I’m firmly expecting things to improve domestically in 2025.

There is so much to look forward to in 2025 with three knockout fixtures already beckoning. Our European tie will certainly be a spectacle and it’ll be great to witness our efforts to reach the Quarter Finals of the Vetru Trophy - hopefully moving closer towards the possibility of facing a familiar opponent in the tournament!

I would like to offer a special thank you to those that continue to support the account across the various platforms and I must admit to my own excitement to continue covering all of the exciting things happening within our Academy at the moment. Most importantly, I would encourage anyone reading to continue supporting these players. There’s a lot of brilliant work happening in the Academy and we should be celebrating it.

Merry Christmas and Up The Villa!